Ear construction



L. A. CASTILLO Feb. 8, 1966 EAR CONSTRUCTION Filed May 1, 1964 INVENTORLUIS A. CASTILLO fldjn w ATTORNEYS United States Patent 3,233,776 EARCONSTRUCTION Luis A. Castillo, P.0. Box 516, Guatemala City, GuatemalaFiled May 1, 1964, Ser. No. 364,262 2 Claims. (Cl. 220--91) Thisinvention relates to a means for securing handles to containers. Moreparticularly, this invention relates to flexible ears for securinghandles to containers.

At the present time, ears which are generally employed areunsatisfactory since they form lose fits with the edge of the container.This is due to the fact that the ear, when attached, has a slightlysmaller diameter than the diameter of the container hole. Through normaluse of the container, this fit becomes looser due to the friction causedby movement of the ear relative to the container wall. Eventually, thehole in the container becomes so large as to render the container unfitfor use.

The present invention provides for a flexible ear assembly which insuresa tight fit when it is attached to the container. The present inventionalso provides for an ear construction which substantially eliminates anymovement of the ear relative to the container.

The present invention provides for a flexible two-piece ear constructionwherein one piece fits into a recess of the other piece to cause thepiece in contact with the container wall to expand slightly. The firstpiece when in use is inserted through a hole in the container wall fromthe inside of the container, and is in contacting relationship with theedge of the container hole. The second piece of the ear is then insertedinto the recess in the protruding neck of the first piece to cause thefirst piece to expand slightly thus forming a tight fit with the holeedge.

Referring to the drawing, the first piece 1 is inserted through thecontainer wall from the inside of the container. The handle 6, which atthe attaching end is formed into a loop, is slipped over the protrudingneck portion 3 of the first piece. The second piece 2, is then insertedinto the recess of the first piece 1 to form a tight fit.

In one preferred form of the invention, the second piece neck portion 4has, at a point intermediate in its length, a slightly larger outsidediameter than the inside diameter of the first piece neck portion. Thisinsures a tight fit between the two pieces of the ear and also insures atight fit between the first piece 1 and the wall 5 through the expansionof the first piece 1.

In another preferred form of the invention, the outside surface neckportion of the second piece 2 around its circumference at the point oflarger diameter and the inside circumference of the first portion neckpiece are deformed to function as an additional locking means when thetwo pieces are joined. One specific embodiment of such a surfacedeformation locking means is a slight recess around the circumference ofthe second piece 4 neck portion with a corresponding slight ridge aroundthe inside circumference of the first piece neck portion 3 which fittogether when the two pieces are joined. The same desired result isaccomplished when the slight ridge 7 is located on the second piece neckportion 4 and the slight recess 8 is located inside the first piece neckportion 3. A series of complementary ridges or recesses on the twomating surfaces of the first and second piece neck portions alsoaccomplishes the desired additional locking function. This complementarysurface deformation locking means eliminates any tendency of slidingbetween the two pieces which may be caused by the larger diameter of thesecond piece neck portion 4.

The second piece neck portion 4 may be either solid or hollow. When thesecond piece neck portion is hollow, the wall thickness must besufiicient to give the required strength to expand the first piece.Also, when the second piece neck portion 4 is hollow, it is preferredthat the larger outside diameter be located at a point near the head ofthe second piece 2, so as to cause the leverage action, due to thelarger diameter, to act to expand the first piece 1.

As was previously stated, the ear of the present invention must beslightly flexible to promote expansion of the first piece, to insure a.tight fitting relationship between it and the wall container and yet bestrong enough to support the weight of the container. The ear of thepresent invention can be made of a high density plastic or rubbermaterial such as high density polyethylene, high density polypropylene,high density nylon and the like. The two pieces of the ears of thepresent invention can be molded by processes which are obvious to oneskilled in the art such as by extrusion and pressing to produce allembodiments of the invention as described above.

What I claim is:

1. A container of comparatively thin sheet material provide-d with ahandle having a loop at each end thereof, said container having a pairof holes on opposite sidewalls thereof, a pair of ear constructions,each connecting one said loop of said handle to said container, eachsaid ear construction comprising two pieces of resilient material,including a first piece having at one end a head larger than said holein said container side-wall and a neck extending from said head throughsaid hole, said neck having an outside diameter at least slightly largerthan the diameter of said hole and not greater than the inside dimensionof said loop, said neck also having a recess extending towards said headfrom an end opposite said head, and a second piece having a head portionwith a diameter larger than the inside diameter of said loop of saidhandle and a neck portion disposed in said recess, said neck portionhaving an outside diameter slightly larger than the diameter of saidrecess to provide a tight fitting relationship with the inside surfaceof said first piece neck and expand said first piece neck against theedges of said hole, said neck portion of said second piece being formedwith a surface deformation on its outer periphery and said neck of saidfirst piece being formed with a complementary surface deformation on theinner peripheral surface of said recess so positioned that when saidneck portion is disposed in said recess said surface deformations are inlocking engagement holding said pieces together, said neck of said firstpiece extending through said hole and protruding out of said containerto receive one loop of said handle, the head of said first pieceabutting against the inside wall of said container, and said headportion of said second piece preventing end-wise removal of said loopfrom said neck of the first p1ece.

2. The container claimed in claim 1 wherein said surface deformation ofsaid neck portion of said second piece is a ridge around thecircumference thereof and said complementary surface deformation is arecess around the inside circumference of said recess in said neck ofsaid first piece.

(References on following page) RGfGI GHCGSMCitBGJDY, the Examiner UNITEDSTATES PATENTS Carll 22091 Hogarty 8539 Al-land 854 2,129,167 9/1938Cunningtpn 8539 2,132,950 10/1938 Green 854 3,180,385 4/1965 Kuroda.

THERON E. CONDON, Primary Examiner. R. H. SCHWARTZ, Assistant Examiner.

1. A CONTAINER OF COMPARATIVELY THIN SHEET MATERIAL PROVIDED WITH AHANDLE HAVING A LOOP AT EACH END THEREOF, SAID CONTAINER HAVING A PAIROF HOLES ON OPPOSITE SIDEWALLS THEREOF, A PAIR OF EAR CONSTRUCTIONS,EACH CONNECTING ONE SAID LOOP OF SAID HANDLE TO SAID CONTAINER, EACHSAID EAR CONSTRUCTION COMPRISING TWO PIECES OF RESILIENT MATERIAL,INCLUDING A FIRST PIECE HAVING AT ONE END A HEAD LARGER THAN SAID HOLEIN SAID CONTAINER SIDE-WALL AND A NECK EXTENDING FROM SAID HEAD THROUGHSAID HOLE, SAID NECK HAVING AN OUTSIDE DIAMETER AT LEAST SLIGHTLY LARGERTHAN THE DIAMETER OF SAID HOLE AND NOT GREATER THAN THE INSIDE DIMENSIONOF SAID LOOP, SAID NECK ALSO HAVING A RECESS EXTENDING TOWARDS SAID HEADFROM AN END OPPOSITE SAID HEAD, AND A SECOND PIECE HAVING A HEAD PORTIONWITH A DIAMETER LARGER THAN THE INSIDE DIAMETER OF SAID LOOP OF SAIDHANDLE AND A NECK PORTION DISPOSED IN SAID RECESS, SAID NECK PORTIONHAVING AN OUTSIDE DIAMETER SLIGHTLY LARGER THAN THE DIAMETER OF SAIDRECESS TO PROVIDE A TIGHT FITTING RELATIONSHIP WITH THE INSIDE SURFACEOF SAID FIRST PIECE NECK AND EXPAND SAID FIRST PIECE NECK AGAINST THEEDGES OF SAID HOLE, SAID NECK PORTION OF SAID SECOND PIECE BEING FORMEDWITH A SURFACE DEFORMATION ON ITS OUTER PERIPHERY AND SAID NECK OF SAIDFIRST PIECE BEING FORMED WITH A COMPLEMENTARY SURFACE DEFORMATION ON THEINNER PERIPHERAL SURFACE OF SAID RECESS SO POSITIONED THAT WHEN SAIDNECK PORTION IS DISPOSED IN SAID RECESS SAID SURFACE DEFORMATIONS ARE INLOCKING ENGAGEMENT HOLDING SAID PIECES TOGETHER, SAID NECK OF SAID FIRSTPIECE EXTENDING THROUGH SAID HOLE AND PROTRUDING OUT OF SAID CONTAINERTO RECEIVE ONE LOOP OF SAID HANDLE, THE HEAD OF SAID FIRST PIECEABUTTING AGAINST THE INSIDE WALL OF SAID CONTAINER AND SAID HEAD PORTIONOF SAID SECOND PIECE PREVENTING END-WISE REMOVAL OF SAID LOOP FROM SAIDNECK OF THE FIRST PIECE.